"I have nothing but praise for the work of Davies Collison Cave," says a client who looks to the firm for patent portfolio management. The client switched to the firm "primarily because of the skills of the attorneys in the biotech and life sciences areas". In particular, Mark Roberts and Tania Obranovich stand out for their "exceptional skills".
The firm boasts nearly 80 members on its IP team across the nation and a proven track record in patent and trade mark filings, weathering the global financial crisis with a strong local client base. The firm is acting for Nordstrom in two Federal Court proceedings and an opposition over the Nordstrom mark. John Hannebery is responsible for this case and also led a crew for Kmart Corporation and Kmart Australia against K Marketing's infringement of its registered marks. The dispute was settled in late November last year.
The outfit further advised Orica Consumer Products on its global rebranding of Dulux Group and DGL and coordinated the international filing programme for the Dulux and DGL trade marks.
One client pinpoints two individuals: "John Stonier is a very experienced licensing negotiator" and "Leon Allen is very professional, helpful with advice and suggestions, and well-connected globally. He is one of our first ports of call for overseas IP infringement activity."
The patent litigation team, which comprises seven partners, has worked on several notable matters. VIP Plastic Packaging sought Hannebery and his team in a patent infringement case against BMW Plastics, while CSL enlisted Ian Pascarl and his group in a patent infringement and revocation matter involving a method of formulating liquid growth hormones to treat different indications.
Another client says, "The leading light is David Webber. He's exceptional on the IT side and on the front line of new emerging technologies. He's somebody worth listening to and up to date with foreign practices."